Medication order

• Stat Order


  Indicates that the medication is to be given immediately and only once
• Single Order


  One-time order is for medication to be given once at a specified time
• Standing Order


  May or may not have a termination date. A standing order may be carried out indefinitely (e.g., multiple vitamins daily) until an order is written to cancel it, or it may be carried out for a specified number of days
• PRN Order


  As-needed order, permits the nurse to give a medication when, in the nurse's judgment, the client requires it
• Types of Medication Order


  • Stat Order
  • Single Order
  • Standing Order
  • PRN Order
• Client's Full Name


  The first and last names and middle initials or names, should always be used to avoid confusion between two clients who have the same last name
• Date and time the order is written


  Writing the time of day on the order can eliminate errors when the nursing shifts change and makes clear when certain orders automatically terminate
• Name of the drug to be administered


  In some settings only generic names are permitted; however, trade names are widely used in hospitals and health agencies
• Dosage of the drug


  Includes the amount of the drug to be administered
• Frequency of administration


  How many times the drug is to be administered
• Route of Administration


  The manner by which the drug is to be administered in the study
• Signature of the ordering physician


  An unsigned order has no validity, and the ordering physician or nurse practitioner needs to be notified if the order is unsigned
• Example


  • Tetracycline 250 mg (amount) four times a day (frequency); potassium chloride 10% (strength) 5 mL (amount) three times a day with meals (time and frequency)
• Communicating a Medication Order


  1. A drug order is written on the client's chart by a primary care provider or by a nurse receiving a telephone or verbal order from a primary care provider

  2. Most acute care agencies have a specified time frame (e.g., 24 or 48 hours) in which the primary care provider issuing the telephone or verbal order must cosign the order written by the nurse

  3. The nurse or clerk then copies the medication order to a Kardex or medication administration record (MAR)
• MARs vary in form, but all include the client's name, drug name and dose; and times and method of administration
• The nurse should always question the primary care provider about any order that is ambiguous, unusual (e.g., an abnormally high dosage of a medication), or contraindicated by the client's condition